There’s no escaping it, burlesque culture is upon us, taking over the city and even sharing flats with us, says Rebecca Potter

Scan the pages of any entertainment listings and it becomes apparent that the burlesque movement is here to stay. Dipping into the past for inspiration, London’s late night psyche is being gradually transformed, with a move away from vast, impersonal bars and clubs to intimate venues with a nostalgic feel.

All over the city, venues are reclaiming the glamour and sparkle of past decades; the London tube now frequently transports a variety of sartorially retrospective party-goers, from Victorian dandies to 1950s rockabillies. In town, The Pigalle Club has created an up-market night out in Leicester Square with its combination of dinner, cocktails, dancing and cabaret. In the East End, the infamous Bethnal Green Working Men's Club often has a one-in-one-out policy from 8pm. Warren Dent, its owner and promoter was even placed above Tony Blair and Madonna in Time Out’s top 100 London movers and shakers.

However, the most visible trend of all is the rise of the burlesque show. Burlesque fever has gripped London’s clubs. And venues such as Volupté, have brought burlesque decadence back into fashion with an opulent riot of tassels, corsets and glitter, fake fur, feathers and fishnets. Dita von Teese and Immodesty Blaize’s sell-out gigs show in no uncertain terms that that burlesque is no longer an underground scene, but one that is flourishing in one of the world’s most discerning cities. And everyone wants to get in on the act.

I was ignorant of the burlesque scene until this year. However, summer festivals and autumn nights have introduced me to its multi-faceted form. I also share a house with a professional dancer and since the kitchen is by far the biggest room, have often had dinner to the slightly unusual sight of a burlesque dancer practicing her routine, nipple tassels and all. I have seen the effort that goes into developing a routine from scratch and it’s not an activity entered into lightly.

Dancers are responsible for providing all their costumes and props and are paid very little (if any) for their efforts. Our cupboard under the stairs harbours a large paper-maché turkey, an ironing board, a snakeskin dress, a voo-doo doll and a variety of corsets, crystal studded underwear and hair extensions. I’m always amazed (and somewhat envious) of the transformation that turns Alisa into Trixie Malicious, a 1950s glamour girl who could have slinked right off a film set. Creativity is integral to a successful act, and a burlesque dancer must be constantly reinventing herself.

For those who have not seen a burlesque show, it is important to distance it from seedy strip clubs and lap dance bars that have a parade of women peeling off their clothes for an exclusively male gaze. Burlesque, proper burlesque, is different. It is mischievous, it is humorous and it is glamorous. It does involve a gradual dwindling of clothing, but it is rarely complete nudity. It is a healthy enjoyment of being a woman, a voluptuous revelling in the female form.

I enjoy watching burlesque, and observing the audiences at evenings I’ve been to, so do other women. There is much to appreciate in the detailed acts, the frills and feathers and elongated lashes. It is a fancy-dress box parade that brings out the chameleon in us all, bringing a feeling of female solidarity in watching an array of women in all shapes and sizes look like they thoroughly enjoy being a woman; a cheeky two fingers up to the overdose of perfection that is flung at us everyday in the media. Burlesque is indulgent, it’s excessive and alluring. So next time you’re browsing the nightlife listings, highlight the burlesque shows and go. And then buy yourself some satin underwear!

Check out Volupté and Bethnal Green Working Men's Club for some great burlesque in intimate venues.

Rebecca Potter is a freelance journalist, lives in Brixton and shares a flat with a proffessional burlesque dancer. Email her at bexpotter@hotmail.com